Dennis McDougal, True-Crime Author and Muckraker of the Movie Industry, Dies at 77
Dennis McDougal, a prolific author, Hollywood muckraker and Peabody Award-winning documentarian, died on Saturday from injuries sustained in a car crash in Southern California. He was 77.
His death, in a hospital near Palm Springs, was confirmed by his stepson, Dennis Fitzgerald Dearmore. Mr. McDougal's wife, Sharon (Murphy) McDougal, 76, who was also critically injured in the crash, died at the hospital on Monday, Mr. Dearmore said.
Mr. McDougal's car was rear-ended in a collision involving multiple vehicles on Interstate 10 near Desert Center, in Riverside County. The couple were driving from their home in Memphis to Hawthorne, Calif., to spend time with their grandchildren.
Mr. McDougal was the author of more than a dozen books, including 'Angel of Darkness,' his first, published in 1991, about the serial killer Randy Kraft, and 'Five Easy Decades: How Jack Nicholson Became the Biggest Movie Star in Modern Times' (2008).
'The Last Mogul' (1998), about the talent agent and head of Universal Studios Lew R. Wasserman, was reviewed in The New York Times, which said that Mr. McDougal 'marshaled reams of documents and hundreds of interviews to show exactly how MCA used its muscle — from making friends with Presidents to strong-arming network executives and devising intricate tax shelters for star clients.' Mr. McDougal's biography of Bob Dylan was published in 2014. Credit... Trade Paper Press
Thank you for your patience while we verify access. If you are in Reader mode please exit and log into your Times account, or subscribe for all of The Times.
Thank you for your patience while we verify access.
Already a subscriber? Log in.
Want all of The Times? Subscribe.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
an hour ago
Weinstein jury deliberations scrutinize one accuser's account
NEW YORK -- Jurors in Harvey Weinstein's sex crimes retrial are drilling down on one of the three charges against him: a rape accusation from a woman who also said she had a consensual relationship with him. The seven female and five male jurors are poised to start their fifth day of deliberations Wednesday by re-hearing Jessica Mann's testimony that he raped her in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013. Mann's accusation was an apparent focus of Tuesday's deliberations, and the jury ended the day by asking to be re-read her testimony about what happened between her and Weinstein at the hotel. The group also indicated it wants to continue privately reviewing her emails with Weinstein and some 2017 medical records concerning her reaction to news accounts of other women's allegations against him. The former Hollywood powerbroker, 73, has pleaded not guilty to raping Mann and to forcing oral sex on two other women, Mimi Haley and Kaja Sokola. The Oscar-winning producer maintains that he never sexually assaulted or raped anyone, and his lawyers portrayed his accusers as opportunists who accepted his advances because they wanted a leg up in the entertainment world. While all three women stayed in contact with Weinstein despite what they say were assaults, Mann had a particularly complex history with him. During days on the witness stand, she testified that they had a consensual relationship that exploded into rape, yet continued afterward. Weinstein was one of the movie industry's most powerful figures until a series of sexual misconduct allegations against him became public in 2017, fueling the #MeToo movement and eventually leading to criminal charges. He originally was convicted in 2020 of raping Mann and forcing oral sex on Haley. Sokola's allegation was added last year, after New York state's highest court overturned the 2020 conviction and sent the case back for retrial. Meanwhile, Weinstein is appealing a 2022 rape conviction in Los Angeles. After a couple of days of apparent interpersonal friction, the retrial jury worked through Tuesday with no further complaints. The Associated Press generally does not identify people without their permission if they say they have been sexually assaulted. Sokola, Mann and Haley have agreed to be named.
USA Today
2 hours ago
- USA Today
Wordle hint today: Clues for June 11 2025 NYT puzzle #1453
Wordle hint today: Clues for June 11 2025 NYT puzzle #1453 WARNING: THERE ARE WORDLE SPOILERS AHEAD! DO NOT READ FURTHER IF YOU DON'T WANT THE JUNE 11, 2025 WORDLE ANSWER SPOILED FOR YOU. Ready? OK. We've seen some hard Wordle words over the years and if you're here, you're probably struggling with today's and are looking for some help. So let's run down a few clues with today's Wordle that could help you solve it: 1. It has two vowels. 2. It's a noun. 3. It's associated with patterns and clothing. And the answer to today's Wordle is below this photo: It's ... PLAID. While you're here, some more Wordle advice: How do I play Wordle? Go to this link from the New York Times and start guessing words. What are the best Wordle starting words? That's a topic we've covered a bunch here. According to the Times' WordleBot, the best starting word is: CRANE. Others that I've seen include ADIEU, STARE and ROAST. Play more word games Looking for more word games?
Yahoo
4 hours ago
- Yahoo
Weinstein jury deliberations scrutinize one accuser's account
NEW YORK (AP) — Jurors in Harvey Weinstein'ssex crimes retrial are drilling down on one of the three charges against him: a rape accusation from a woman who also said she had a consensual relationship with him. The seven female and five male jurors are poised to start their fifth day of deliberations Wednesday by re-hearing Jessica Mann's testimony that he raped her in a Manhattan hotel room in 2013. Mann's accusation was an apparent focus of Tuesday's deliberations, and the jury ended the day by asking to be re-read her testimony about what happened between her and Weinstein at the hotel. The group also indicated it wants to continue privately reviewing her emails with Weinstein and some 2017 medical records concerning her reaction to news accounts of other women's allegations against him. The former Hollywood powerbroker, 73, has pleaded not guilty to raping Mann and to forcing oral sex on two other women, Mimi Haley and Kaja Sokola. The Oscar-winning producer maintains that he never sexually assaulted or raped anyone, and his lawyers portrayed his accusers as opportunists who accepted his advances because they wanted a leg up in the entertainment world. While all three women stayed in contact with Weinstein despite what they say were assaults, Mann had a particularly complex history with him. During days on the witness stand, she testified that they had a consensual relationship that exploded into rape, yet continued afterward. Weinstein was one of the movie industry's most powerful figures until a series of sexual misconduct allegations against him became public in 2017, fueling the #MeToo movement and eventually leading to criminal charges. He originally was convicted in 2020 of raping Mann and forcing oral sex on Haley. Sokola's allegation was added last year, after New York state's highest court overturned the 2020 conviction and sent the case back for retrial. Meanwhile, Weinstein is appealing a 2022 rape conviction in Los Angeles. After a couple of days of apparent interpersonal friction, the retrial jury worked through Tuesday with no further complaints. The Associated Press generally does not identify people without their permission if they say they have been sexually assaulted. Sokola, Mann and Haley have agreed to be named.
